


A Piece of You

by SilentAvera



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alpha Victor Nikiforov, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Blood, Body Horror, But please use your best judgement, Children, Established Relationship, Gore, Hopeful Ending, I mean it this fic will come into your home and slap you, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, It's not all bad just really violent, Katsuki-Nikiforov family has plot armor, M/M, MONSTERS GONNA NOM NOM NOM PEOPLE THIS IS YOUR FINAL WARNING, Mother Yuuri, Not for Fainthearted, Off-screen Child Death, Omega Katsuki Yuuri, Post-Apocalypse, Protective Parents, Survival Horror, Survive the Monster, Warm Ending, YOI Halloween Fic, YOI Spooky Week, YOI Spooky Week 2019, body dismemberment, capitalism forever sucks, graphic depictions and scenes, on-screen killings, on-screen mutilation, on-screen serious child injury, robotic/ advanced future
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-27
Updated: 2019-10-27
Packaged: 2021-01-04 16:50:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 17,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21200933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilentAvera/pseuds/SilentAvera
Summary: Raising your kids is hard, keeping them safe is hard, let's make it harder by giving humans a natural predator, aside from each other.





	1. Humans...

**Author's Note:**

> Woah. Hey there :3
> 
> So this, is my contribution to the YOI Spooky Week event. Late. Somewhat. 'Cause that's just how I roll 8'3
> 
> I know I've been MIA with one other YOI A/B/O story (and a Christmas gift that I will be doing a walk of shame for...), but it's not abandoned, I posted too early =n= Writing takes time, GOD IT TAKES TIME, and my life is, something, but enough excuses, I'm just star-gazed that I managed to finish this little 40 page ficlet to help jump-start my other YOI projects in limbo, it's a sign, I speak it to existence, I will finish those fics.
> 
> So yeah, this is using the same family from "Beware the Goba Yaba", my peeps from the Darwin Award series/ universe, same thing, just a little different =w=b These monsters are in there too, so, beware...
> 
> About this ficlet, if you can handle more violent media like Dead Space, The Thing 1984, Halloween, and the like, you should be okay, but bow out if you need to, I totes understand. There is no shame skipping to the ending to make sure everything is how you'd like it after reading...what the hell this is.
> 
> Without further ado....enjoy...
> 
> Or not....
> 
> Just know I don't take ya'll on a journey this harrowing without some kind of hug in the end.

_Tap, tap, tap,_ Yuuri’s knife sliced the chicken breast into pieces against the cutting board, once he had even slivers, he dripped them into an egg solution, flour, seasonings and then onto the sizzling fry pan. He was making karaage, or, partially, he was incorporating Japanese and American seasonings (which irked his mother to no end).

The aroma from the kitchen was heavenly and he wasn’t without an audience. Three pairs of wide, dilated (HUNGRY) eyes were watching him from behind the counter, three children, two, Victor and Yuuri’s own, the twins Mika and Mila, and their friend Ruri from next door. Mika favored Victor with her platinum blonde (slightly yellow) hair, however curly and flowing; her fair blue eyes sparkled at many things. Mila favored Yuuri with her dark hair, short cut just above her shoulders with sweeping bangs, her eyes the same shade as her mother’s, but much quieter and more observant.

Mika tried to scoot closer from her barstool seat, but Yuuri tut-tutted at her, “No sweetie, this is raw, you need to stay back, or you can get sick.”

“Mh X<”

Mila just continued to watch at a respectable difference while Ruri looked back to see Victor still trying to set up a gaming console chip for them all to play, clicking through the channels at an annoyed pace. Mika’s restlessness moved her to lean on Mila, “Mhp” –

“MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMH XC”

“Mika you need a snack?” Victor asked.

“Mh ;n; I’m okay.” She continued to lean all over her sister however, “It buzzes.”

“BPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPTH” went Mila, making Mika laugh.

Mila had no qualms about Mika’s behavior, given she can be a bit _much._ They evened each other out quite nicely, of which their parents were infinitely grateful for. Every quiet, calculating, studious trait Yuuri and Victor seemingly had went into Mila, and every flamboyant, reckless, random, and, _expressive_ trait, went into Mika. That wasn’t to say Mila couldn’t be emotive, or Mika cautious, and it tickled their parent’s hearts dearly to see Mika pout just like her mother, or Mila have that confident gleam in her eyes like her father, and that usually ended with a “daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaadugh” or a “moooooooooooooooooooooooomugh” as their parents gushed over them. No one would argue that Yuuri and Victor loved their children dearly, they only had them on this earth for 5 years yet they lived a lifetime of joy in each of their smiles.

“Mr. Victor, is the TV being stubborn?” asked Ruri.

“Yes, the TV just isn’t cooperating, it’s not reading the chip,” Victor pinched the chip out of the side of the TV and put it back in, making sure he heard the click, “Mh. I’ll work around it, don’t worry, we will get to play the Mario Karts if I have to be the Kart” –

That made Mika’s eyes sparkle.

“But there’s just one of you,” said Ruri –

“I’ll make it work.”

Ruri had marble hair (amber and black), along with eyes that were bluer than Victor’s (they looked like someone just took the starkest marker and colored them). She was the spitting image of her mother, an exceptionally famous model, and it unnerved Victor and Yuuri greatly how quickly her parents were asking their only child to grow up. The first thing Ruri typically asks for when she comes over for a play date are napkins to wipe off the lipstick, glitter, and eye shadow she plays with at home.

“I’m not as good as mommy is yet with her makeup, I like to paint with them more, but she gets mad when I draw with it :c”

Yuuri and Victor let Ruri draw whatever she wanted. She would ask Yuuri how he does his makeup, but Yuuri always managed to shift the conversation over to the art Ruri wanted to make. They never asked Ruri to keep her making art a secret, but the fact that Ruri already knew to keep it away from her parents, made them sad regardless.

Victor looked over to Ruri and saw her chewing on her lip, looking at the clock..._Poor thing, already dreading when her parents come pick her up.._.

Yuuri and Victor’s relationship with Ruri’s parents was ‘tolerable’ at best. For the sake of their kids getting to play with their best friend, they put up a front. The trio of girls had known each other since they were three, and for five-year olds, two years is an awfully long time, with Ruri’s parents, two minutes was an eternity.

If there was ever talk-time between them, it tended to end rather abruptly – especially with Ruri’s mother –

“Yuuri, I heard Mika developed Hepson’s Hypermetabolic syndrome, is that true?”

“Yes, it is.”

“She has to eat _constantly_ is that right?”

“Somewhat, she has to maintain a calorie intake that’s proportional to what her body burns in excess and she takes medicine infused with her snacks to help regulate everything from how her body burns fat to the sugar count in her blood” –

“Poor baby! Isn’t she a Hippogriff Bloodline!?”

“Yes” –

“So she’s a Mythical Blood like her daddy, how is it possible she still got sick?!”

“…..Hippogriffs have a higher-rate of developing Hepson’s Syndrome because of their naturally high metabolic rate.”

“Mh, well, that is true, hyper, fast little things they are! But you’d think she’d have better resistances with you being an Even-blooded Chimera and Victor a Unicorn! There’s good genes there, good genes, good blood, good legacy! Alas, sometimes something undesirable just slips through…” She gave a forlorn look, directly at Yuuri. (*Yuuri’s _blood_ is very much boiling*). “Well….in the end, she is _still_ a Mythical Bloodline like her Daddy, even if she’s sick, she can hide it _easily” –_

Yuuri’s fists and jaw clenched –

“You know, come to think of it, being able to _eat_ ‘_whatever_’ you _wanted_ and not put on an ounce of _fat_ is a rather _good_ trait, in a way, that’s a _blessing_ in disguise – and how she loves to run! She’ll grow nicely into her legs, I bet she’ll have to wear a disguise like me lest she’s left to fend the hounds off of her! _Mythicals,_ even their _illnesses_ are beneficial to them –!”

Thankfully Victor arrived and had to physically steer Yuuri away from Mrs. _AbouttogetpunchedintheFACE_ as Yuuri’s eyes became black with his iris’ turning into thin yellow rings – the sign of an Omega about to _TEAR INTO A DUMB BITCH –_

**_“She can die from it,”_** was all Yuuri hissed before Victor entered the conversation to announce their leave (he had exited talking to the dad, which was like talking to a toilet), but not without a parting shot (petty feelings be damned) –

“Leti, everyone can see what’s really important to you, nothing will hide that. Good day.”

“See you later!” It went over her head of course, nothing seemed to get under her skin (given it was stretched all over her, perhaps that explained a lot), either she was the most obtuse person on the planet, or she lit fires on purpose; probably the latter. She seemed to revel in ‘elevated emotions’.

And….it wasn’t that Yuuri and Victor were against the glam, goodness knows they like to sway and slay, but when people took their ideals of beatification and plastered them over worth, then, yes, there is a problem, especially when forcing your child to conform to impossible standards for ‘other’ people’s enriching. _Why? What was the point?_

“I think of it like I’m a pony,” said Ruri, “And I’m being shown off” –

_FOR WHAT –_

“Just to be pretty!”

_UGH GOD –_

Ruri’s mother would also gush and _gush_ over how _perfect_ Victor was with her own husband standing RIGHT THERE, and he only nodding in agreement. (“Oh how you lucked out Yuuri! My husband thinks the same thing of me! A Rabbit Blood with a Fairy! You a Chimera with a Unicorn! But, buuuuuut~ It’s not _luck_ is it?”) She would make a subtle obscene gesture, laughing, playing it off as an inside joke they both were in on, but Yuuri never laughed, and just barely contained his anger that his worth was measured by the pleasure Victor got in the bedroom (and his genes). In being a Chimera, a soup of genes, random luck, parts of many just scrambled together, thank goodness they made something that could take a dick! (*COUGH*) –

Sure, Yuuri and Victor met under, _unique_ circumstances, but what they had was real, unlike SO MUCH of Ruri’s mother –

Yuuri and Victor just couldn’t help but feel for Ruri. They always encouraged Mika and Mila to tell them anything and everything that made them uncomfortable or scared or worse, and hoped some of those talks would signal to Ruri that it was okay to come to them too. They knew they were setting themselves up for a confrontation, but if it was to help, dare it come to it, save a child, they would gladly take that risk.

It's not like they couldn’t squash Ruri’s parent’s into dust. Easily in fact, and sometimes Victor would catch himself wondering what were they waiting for? But to take the law into their own hands meant endangering their own children, and they could never, _ever _do that.

Ruri was a Fairy, a Mythical Blood like her mother (a lower form of Mythical, but a Mythical regardless). Mythicals have privileges, and it was the worst secret that Ruri’s mom shacked up with powerful officials to elevate her prestige further, a favor here, a favor there and everything in-between (if her father, a common class Rabbit Blood could have those same privileges as a Mythical, he cared not who his wife slept with, there was no way he was Ruri’s biological father….some say Ruri’s mother CLONED HERSELF –)

_What was the point?_ What was the _reason_ for this behavior? The answer was simple as it was before the bombs fell as to now, status. Perhaps being a Fairy wasn’t good enough for Ruri’s mother? There are stronger Mythical lines, albeit they are rarer, Dragon, Phoenix, Unicorn, to name a few. Then you have Chimeras, even and odd blooded, Common Bloods, and Hydras (you won't live long, much less reproduce). It was beaten into everyone’s head who’s important, who is not, who is desirable, who is not, who will have wonderful lives, and who will not.

This only made Yuuri and Victor worry for Ruri more…Her mother talked of having other children….not so much siblings for Ruri….What was her purpose?

Perhaps she was made to befriend children of those Ruri’s mother needed access to, one way or another…

All these thoughts conflicted with the well-being of their own children. What could they do? What could they risk? What is the most important thing in the world?

Bile would rise up Victor’s throat at the mere _suggestion_ of a _thought_ of their babies Mika and Mila becoming orphans and cast out to the mercy of this world. There wouldn’t be anything left of them. But what did that mean for Ruri? Could all they do was wait, _painfully wait_ until an incident happened they could report?

They would test the decree of a world reborn, “we will be better, for our children.” Yes, Ruri’s mother has friends in high places, but so do Yuuri and Victor. Victor is a Unicorn Blood, of the highest ranking Mythicals (considered a god in some countries), world renowned athlete, and Yuuri, an Even-blooded Chimera is an inspiring story of rising in the skating ranks due to hard work and preservation; it was every person’s dream to think they could do it, it wasn’t luck, it was skill…_'I_ can _BE_ better!'

And yet….

_Is_ that being better for the future? If all one strives for is power…Was this not what ended the world before? Humanity re-purposed its war machines ‘for the greater good’ and clawed its way back up the food chain by taking the very essence of animals to give them strength, give them longer lives, give them a chance to fight back against a monstrous and mutated planet driven mad by a war that swallowed it whole and left a majority of its biodiversity to reside in the veins of the very species responsible for its dire reckoning.

Nature is infinitely more ravenous now than it was before. Creatures that make no sense roam the land and seas, and weather that defies all logic rages over the planet at random intervals.

And somehow, it feels like people are still more dangerous. With the prevalence of the class system as the most common socially accepted principles, humanity's worst traits tended to bubble to the top.

The “lower” blood classes learn from a very young age what they’re appreciated as. The only reason Yuuri and Victor could fathom why Ruri’s mother married Ruri’s stand-in father, was, he was more than what he said he was, and that unknown, both terrified and angered the couple. They tried talking to him…really, they truly did, but what would a kind word now say against what he was taught his entire life?

It was like two animals sizing each other up, in-between them, their offspring, the gamble, their very lives, the future of their legacy – why was it always at the cost of the one thing that keeps the future _going?_

Of course, opinions on that vary, hence conflict, forevermore.

Everyone was supposed to be better, but in reality, humanity was back at square one, and who knows how much time they had left before another cataclysmic event threatened them as a whole, from their own makings or otherwise.

There is a clock ticking, and everyone is too caught up in frivolous ideals and monetary accumulation to notice, save for a few…

But now back to the present, and this “happy” family.

“Daddy the TV was working yesterday,” said Mila, all three girls were watching Victor now, Yuuri using their distraction to breeze through cutting up more chicken.

“Yes sweetpea it was, but we had that storm remember? The TV might have gotten scrambled a little from the lightning.” *_Surge protected outlets my ass* –_

Ruri let her legs sway from the height of the barstool, “At least that storm didn’t have the scary orbs, but my daddy said the government peoples are worried the bad lightning got processed into the power grid by mistake and the elec-_lec_-trishity is messing up some stuff.”

Mika looked alarmed, _“Daddy is the TV going to eat us?”_

“No sweetheart the TV is not going to eat us” –

“Leave it alone, don’t make it mad ;_;”

“It’s alright Mika, the TV is no more alive than the floor.”

“Be nice to the floor too ;_;”

_“Wooough,”_ Yuuri sighed, grabbing his abdomen, his need to brace himself against the counter alerted everyone –

“Honey, _you alright?”_ Victor was already halfway over to him –

Yuuri was feeling some fatigue with an ache stirring in the core of his abdomen. He was reminded, yet again, that it was a miracle they had children of their own _at all,_ but he wouldn’t let the pain slow him down, and it bothered him less and less as time went on; now was a rare occurrence.

“Mommy is your tummy hurting again?”

“It’s already passed, I’m fine love.”

“Okey X3”

Regardless, Victor was by his mate’s side, Yuuri smiling brightly against a tuft of steam as he removed a lid from a pot, _don’t worry, I’m okay._ They shared a chaste kiss (making the little ones roll their eyes and go BLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEGH) and Victor went back to fighting with the TV.

He always looked so apologetic when Yuuri had an episode. Alphas are supposed to protect their loved ones, and the one-time Victor wasn’t there, Yuuri almost lost his life (surprisingly not a shadow attack from one certain couple). Yuuri never blames Victor of course, he was just at the wrong place, at the wrong time, a freak incident that involved the mutated weather dropping St. Elmo’s fire from the heavens to create a magnetic monster _every, single, person_ on the planet feared – a monster that every rebuilt country used a majority of their defense funds to combat, second only to shelter from the storms that birthed them.

Some say this was the revenge of nature, the creation of humanity’s only natural predator_…”a conglomerate of the sins we have failed to repent for…!”_

Yuuri just counted his stars he survived an encounter with a Metal Mongrel. Many, many, many, _many_ people cannot say otherwise.

Ruri was now spinning around on the barstool seat and stopped on her heel to look at Victor, “Mr. Victor is it true when you were a baby that a Metal Mongrel tried to eat you, but you tasted bad and it spit you out?”

“No Ruri, that is not true,” said Victor. It was a half-truth however, a Metal Mongrel did try to "eat" him as an infant, but he was saved. Everyone starts off as a baby, and just because he was a Mythical baby didn't mean the Mongrel wanted him any less or any more; they're not picky.

“Can you talk to Mongrels?”

“No I cannot.”

“I wish I could, I would tell them all to go away.”

“Sweetheart I hope you never, _ever_ meet one.”

“Yeah, they are pretty scary :c”

Victor sighed, “Okay sweethearts, I’m sorry, the TV is just not having it tonight, we’ll have to play something else” –

Mika bounced up, “DADDY TURN INTO A UNICORN *-*!!!!”

Ruri’s eyes sparkled –

“He said he was going to be a kart” said Mila –

“I’m cool with either *-*,” said Ruri, “But unicorns are cool” –

“Mika, remember, mommy and daddy only use our Fauna Forms if there is an emergency, not many people can do what we can” –

“The TV might eat us” –

“The TV is not going to eat us” –

“When do I get _my_ Fauna Form >:c”

“Not till you’re almost an adult like mommy or daddy, but even then” –

“Mommy if you turned into a Chimera, you could cook the food REAL FAST *-*!!”

“No sweetheart, that’s not how it works ^^;;”

“What if I ate the TV?”

“The you’d be a Mongrel,” said Ruri, “They eat EVERYTHING.”

“MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM X<”

“Mika come get you your snacks,” said Yuuri, “You’re hungry, and it’s time for your medicine.”

“Okey~”

Yuuri was finishing up the vegetables when he found a pair of eyes sparkling at him from the counter again, “Yes Ruri?”

“….What does your F-Fauna form look like?”

“I DREW PICTURES 8D!!!” Mika popped up, snack in her mouth –

“Mika chew your food,” said Yuuri and Victor at the same time –

“LOOK LOOK LOOOOOOOK~!”

Mika’s picture of Victor as a Unicorn was earnest, his eyelashes were almost as long as his mane and tail, and he was striking a dashing pose with sparkles all abound.

Ruri’s face lit up, “YOU’RE A PONY PONY PONYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY MAGIIIIIIIIIIIIC –!”

“It’s not magic," Victor blushed, "it’s just, uh” –

“Good blood,” said Mila, _ugh_ –

“NOW LOOK, LOOK AT MOMAAAAAAAAAAAAAA~! MOMMA IS SO PRETTY!!!!”

Yuuri’s picture was a little more detailed since there was a little more to him, he looked like a long feathery serpent with big wings for arms, his legs were down the line of his curvy body, and his tail was swooping around the page; his glasses were drawn on thick and huge (and there were more sparkles).

“Yes, momma is _beautiful,”_ smiled Victor in a way that never failed to make Yuuri’s heart do a backflip, making him flustered –

Ruri flapped her arms like a bird about to take flight, “YOU LOOK LIKE A DRAGOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON”

“Yes, well, I only look like one, my bloodline as a Chimera, uh, all Chimeras are different, I just happened to be made up of genes that, have me look like that” –

_“PRETTYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY”_ –

“Thank-you sweetheart.”

Ruri nodded, “Yeah, some Chimeras look very _ugly,_ but you are pretty” –

“Ruri, everyone is beautiful in their own way,” said Yuuri; he noticed a little sigh from Mila.

“Mmmmmmmmh,” Ruri shrugged, she was more interested in drawing now that Mika brought over more paper and Victor pulled out the art box; both parents exchanged quiet concerned looks. Mika and Mila were already buried in their drawings but Ruri was still tapping the paper with her crayon.

“What would you like to draw Ruri?” asked Victor.

“I dunno.”

“…Would you like to paint with some lipstick?” came Yuuri’s voice.

That made her eyes sparkle. Victor went over to their room to get the set as Yuuri was in the homestretch of finishing up dinner; now he making something extra, he was working with a cleaned chicken (already prepped, bless the butcher), but the knife just wasn’t cutting it, he was getting tired (though he wouldn’t admit it), so he resorted to just twisting off the legs, thighs, and wings to toss into a chunk soup for Mika for later (plus the broth made for good stock for another meal), _twist,_ _crunch,_ _pop,_ the bones and cartilage came apart, Ruri scrunched her nose at the sound till it made her stomach turn and eyes water – Mila looked up, “What’s wrong?”

“…I don’t like that sound…”

“Chunk soup, chunk soup, chunk soup,” Mika chanted to herself, her mouth was watering.

Victor suddenly arrived and Ruri quickly wiped her face before an adult could notice – “Here you are Ruri – Mika, Mila, feel free to paint with these too.”

Mila just stuck her tongue out –

Mika sniffed them, _“Chunk soup, chunk soup, chunk soup,”_ (“Please do not eat these sweetheart”) she took a lipstick and started drawing, holding that and a couple more crayons in one hand –

Ruri began painting abstractly, letting the colors flow where they may, “You must be really _rich_ if you can buy all the lipstick you want.”

Yuuri and Victor’s home was the only two story one on the block….so…..

“Mommy and Daddy buy all sorts of stuff,” said Mika, “A lot of it is food for _meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.”_

“You need food,” said Mila, “Special food.”

“Just for _me” –_

Mila crinkled her nose –

“We all need food,” said Victor, “Mila would you like a snack” –

“No.”

Ruri sighed, “I just get makeup and dresses. And dolls. I would like more food.”

Victor and Yuuri’s hearts just broke, “Here sweetie, I’ll” –

“You want my snack?” Mika offered holding out her hand, but that was met with swift determent from Yuuri, Victor, and Mila –

_“Nononononono” –_

“You can’t do that!” Mila hissed –

“Sweetheart, your food is only for you, remember?” Victor had reached over and blocked Mika –

“Oh” – Mika felt bad pulling her hand back though.

“It’s okay,” said Ruri, “I know your food is only for you, it’ll make someone like me _sick.”_

“It makes momma and papa _sick_ too,” said Mila.

Mika -> :(

“Girls, let’s reel it in a bit.”

Yuuri had paused his cooking and was getting out what he had cataloged in his mind as the universal snacks, “Here Ruri, Mila, some snacks for you two” – before Yuuri could leave the kitchen, Victor met him halfway, gathering them from Yuuri, the both of them watching Mika carefully, she _hated_ feeling different – Yuuri and Victor cursing the outside forces that tried to turn the principals they taught to their children on their heads –

“I’ll wait till dinner,” said Mila in protest. Ruri accepted the snack from Victor, but just set it beside her, as if she could only absorb its energy by looking at it. Mika finished up her snack with a pout, slurping on her fingers and that prompted Mila to go eat her snack, but Ruri still held off on her’s.

Victor checked in on what Ruri’s drawing was turning out to be, it was all a mess of colors, no real direction or shape or form stood out, it made no sense, and it was beautiful.

“This is me,” said Ruri. Mika and Mila looked over and was confused by what Ruri meant, but Victor’s heart only broke further.

“Where are you?” asked Mila.

“Prettyyyyyyyy X3” said Mika regardless.

“I’m all of this. I wish I didn’t look like my mom. I don’t want to look like anything that makes sense. My parents tell me that Alpha’s roar, and Omegas hiss, but I want to roar….Mr. Yuuri, can you roar?”

“Well…..”

“I bet you could if you really wanted to momma,” said Mika.

“Daddy’s roar is _scary,”_ said Mila.

“And loud,” Mika added.

“Nobody on _earth_ roars like Dad,” said Mila.

“It’s good to be only one piece,” said Ruri.

“Alright kiddos! Dinner time!” Yuuri chimed, swallowing his bleeding heart for this poor child.

And it was a trial every time to get Ruri to eat.

“Eat as much as you want dear. _It’s okay.”_

Ruri piddled with her plate a bit, but after watching Mika and Mila scarf their food down with no shame, then Ruri began to nibble, then nip, then bite, then eat.

“Daddy” –

“Mika please chew your food” –

“(*chewchewchewswallow*) Daddy” –

“Yes love” –

“Mommaaaaaaaa” –

“Yes~?”

“What did the wolf say to the waiter?”

“What baby?”

“Dinner for _twooooooooo~”_

Victor and Yuuri chuckled, Mila couldn’t hold back her laugh if she tried and Ruri’s laughing only made the girls laugh harder.

“Mila~”

“Huh?”

“Where do the spaghetti and sauce go to dance?”

“Where?”

“At the meat_ball!”_ Mika could barely finish the joke before she burst out laughing, taking everyone out with her.

“I’ve got one,” said Victor, “Don’t think I will take his joke-off sitting down, (*ahem*) why is the computer so smart?”

_“It listens to it’s motherboard!”_ piped Mika –

Victor playfully fell back in his chair, hand over his heart –

Yuuri looked to Victor, “You’ve trained her well.”

“When I become a dad,” said Mika, “I will be the BEST joker!”

“Well that’s many, many, MANY years off from now,” said Victor.

“Yeah~ Can I still tell jokes?”

“Of course! Let’s see who can make everyone laugh first” –

“PICKLES” –

And Mila just burst out laughing.

“I win >:3c”

The joke-off between Victor and Mika only intensified and ended when everyone was laughing so hard the corners of their mouths hurt, leaving dinner on a much more positive note than when it began.

Afterwards, Victor cleaned up the kitchen and put the food away as Yuuri rested in the living room with the girls, watching them go into the toy box (“Girls remember to put back what you’re not going to use”). The couple rotated chores amongst themselves, Victor thinking of what he was going to cook next and if there was anything he could make that Ruri might like…

When Victor was done cleaning up he went to go join his husband and found they had set up an impromptu concert stage (chairs, blankets, and boxes).

“DADDY WE ARE GOING TO PERFORM *-*”

“Oh?” Victor took a seat by Yuuri who was just smiling away, the girls’ joy infectious.

“They wouldn’t play a single note till we were together,” said Yuuri, “They told me it would be a surprise.”

“YES 8D!!”

“We talked about it at school and practiced, _in secret,”_ said Mila, a confident gleam in her eyes over a smirk.

“Goodness,” Victor smiled.

Mika stood on her tippe-toes, “Our band is called the Bee-bees” –

“The Zee-bees,” said Ruri.

“The Tee-bees” –

_“The Zee-bees,”_ said Mila –

Victor and Yuuri clapped their hands, “The Zee-bees, alright!”

“What does the name mean?” Yuuri asked.

“I dunno.”

“Okay” –

“Our sound is contem-_por_ary, rock, un-justified,” said Mila.

_Oh boy –_

“We’re going to do a foreign song too because it es-ca_la_tes a ‘fant-AAas_tic_al other’ about our self-_ide_-ntity letting the pop-_pu_lace impose their i_de_als upon us,” said Mila.

“…What.”

“Which in _turn_ will allow us to _destroy_ their fantasy with the cold, harsh, truth of who we are.”

“Uh” –

_UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUHH???????_

Mika stepped playfully on her play pedal as Mila sat down gracefully before the soundboard and Ruri scooched in at the drums.

“Mommy, Daddy, ready?”

“Y-Yes sweetheart” –

“Whenev” –

It wasn’t so much _start,_ as was **_UNLEASHED _**– Mika banged her toy guitar, Mila all but punched the soundboard, and Ruri, bless her heart, used every limb she had to bang the drums all while Mika screamed out the English Alphabet –

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA” –

“BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE” –

“CEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE”

“DEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE” –

Victor -> :’)

Yuuri -> :’)

The parents sat through all 26 letters. Dare come the numbers.

Victor -> 8’)

Yuuri -> 8’)

When FINALLY the set was done, all three girls ended on a pose, their instruments, all buttons pressed, all playing different pre-recorded tunes, out of sync, and only when Mika’s guitar stopped playing ‘the itsy bitsy spider’ did Mila close out the performance with, “Down with the pigs of capitalism.”

“WE ARE TAKING THE ALPHABET BACK!” Mika screamed, she held her guitar over her head, _“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!”_

Victor and Yuuri thought vehemently to themselves (knowing the culprit of these ideals at hand), _YURIO WE ARE GOING TO HAVE A DISCUSSION ON WHAT IS APPROPRIATE TO SAY AROUND CHILDREN –_

Mika moved to slam her toy guitar on the ground –

_“NONONONONONONONO” –_

And thus concluded the concert of Zee-Bees.

Ruri’s parents arrived home shortly after, Victor and Yuuri heard their ele-car drive up next door and had half a mind to bolt the door. The precocious knocking let them know it was Ruri’s mother who’d come to collect her, child. Yuuri went and opened the door (begrudgingly), the woman barely acknowledging his presence with Victor (and her investment) in her line of sight – “Hello my sweet baby girl~! Charming your host I’m sure” –

** _PLEASE GET HIT BY A TRUCK –_ **

“Hi mommyyyyyy” – Ruri sighed, she hauled herself up, head slightly tilted down, and walked over –

“Remember to give hugs!” her mother chirped.

Ruri looked uncomfortable.

“It’s okay Ruri, we know how much you care about us,” Yuuri said quickly.

Her mother scooped her daughter up, _“More for me then,”_ she nuzzled her daughter, blowing a raspberry on her cheek, the scene playing out in the same sense of a cat-owner nuzzling a cat that was about to scratch their eyes out – she bobbed her kid, “My baby girl, you ate hm?”

“Hm.”

** _PLEASE GET HIT BY AN ASTEROID –_ **

“Thank-you so much for looking after Ruri again, we didn’t mean to stay out so late, time just got away! Come on, let’s go say hi to daddy and get you ready for bed, wave bye-bye sweetie, bye bye!”

“Bye bye,” said Ruri.

“BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE~!” yelled Mika.

“See ya later,” said Mila.

“Bye sweetheart, we’ll see you soon,” said Yuuri.

“Have sweet dreams Ruri,” said Victor.

Ruri waved and waved and waved, even when her mother had fully turned away to walk home, Ruri twisted herself to still look at the family and wave.

Closing the door on her waving form was very hard to do, so Yuuri and Victor waited and watched till they saw Ruri and her mother enter their home, only then did they shut the door, and left them to their fate.

Yuuri and Victor sighed deeply.

“What’s wrong?” asked Mika, “Why do you look so sad?”

“We’ll see Ruri again soon,” said Mila.

Children do pick up on quite a lot….

“We’re okay love.”

“Come, let’s get ready for bed too.”

Mika yawned so widely she almost fell over, “I am sleepyyyyyy…..and hungry.”

Bathed, and dressed in their nightgowns (and Mika with her snacks), Mika and Mila trotted over to their beds and bounced a couple times, Mika bouncing off, “OH! Almost forgot, _bub, bub, bub, bub” –_ she went to the window sill, Mila sliding off her bed too, joining Mika as she pushed the window up and open.

Mika grabbed a bottle of bubble-water off to the side, Mila grabbed hers, the both of them churning the tiny wand, before blowing bubbles out the window together into the night air, “Goodnight Makkachin!”

“Goodnight Makkachin.”

“Watch over mommy and daddy” –

“And Ruri” –

“ESPECIALLY Ruri.”

“Bite her parents.”

“Mila,” tut-tutted Victor as he and Yuuri entered the twins’ room, “We mustn’t wish harm on others.”

Emphasis on _we._

“Mh.”

“Or ask others to do harm for us,” said Victor.

“But you _think_ it,” said Mila, as Yuuri picked her up (Victor picked up Mika), “I know you do.”

Children pick up on MANY things.

Yuuri -> :/

“We may have _thoughts,”_ said Yuuri, “And anyone can have thoughts, but we recognize they’re not nice ones and try to make peace with what is making us feel bad.”

“What if what’s making you feel bad won’t stop? How do you make all the bad things stop?”

Yuuri wondered a moment. There’s something else here…Kids can learn to read their parents, and likewise, parents can read their kids and know something is wrong. At least the ones that care.

Yuuri looked into his daughter’s eyes as he tucked her in, “Mila, sometimes, bad things happen, things that no one in the whole world have any control over. It’s scary, and tiring, but what helps is that you have people who love you very, very, _very much~!”_ Yuuri nuzzled Mila, making her smile, “And that love, can help the bad thoughts, and bad things, become memories to remind us that no matter how bad it gets, we’re loved, and with love, we can overcome the worst of things.”

For now, at this age, this explanation will do….However, Yuuri’s abdomen would have some things to say, as did some of Victor’s, _thoughts._

For now, Mila smiled, so Yuuri smiled back, “Goodnight Mila, _I love you so much.”_ He kissed the top of her head.

Yuuri and Victor traded places, wished their kids goodnight, said they loved them more, and gave goodnight kisses with a final, “Goodnight” from both parents by the doorway.

“Goodnight =w=,” Mika smiled, rolling over and cuddling up to her stuffed sheep doll.

“Goodnight,” Mila smiled, turning on her stomach and falling into slumber land.

With a loving sigh, Victor closed the door, and he and Yuuri retired to their room.

Yuuri wanted to fall face-forward into bed, but he and Victor still had to bathe themselves, and watching his husband strip on his way to the shower woke him up enough to trot over, especially when Victor looked back at him and let his pants slip _just enough_ –

**.**

**.**

**.**

That evening, as the city slept, a silent storm gathered overhead with no rain. The clouds pulsed with purple veins of energy. Flashing lights from lightning bolts jumped from cloud to cloud and lit up the night sky with not a single sound of thunder. Birds fled, animals wild and domestic barked, hissed, moaned, and screamed and scurried under furniture or rocks or just straight up ran - horses broke from their stalls, chickens dropped dead of fright, cattle went into a stampede, dogs pulled on their chains or ran all about the yard – yet up over the city – _silence –_ ……a single glowing orb came floating down from the clouds, moving randomly, like a leaf on the wind.

Then another fell.

And another.

And another.

And another, like innocent snow.

One went into a tree.

One went into an ele-car.

One went into light pole.

One went all the way down from the sky into the chimney of Ruri’s house.

Country officials were alerted, city officials were scrambling, and before the city sirens could sound, the power grid shut off leaving thousands in the dark–

_“GET THE GENERATORS RUNNING NOW!!! NOW, DAMMIT, **NOW!!!” –**_

Yuuri and Victor, after having a good, _good_ shower together were so lost in sleep, curled around the warmth of each other, that they did not stir much from the sounds of dogs barking down the street, even less when the barking suddenly stopped with a whimper.

Mika rolled around on her bed, she wasn’t a light sleeper, but she wasn’t a heavy one either. Slowly, she was pulled around awake by an odd feeling. With a deep breath she stretched and sat up, she didn’t notice the nightlight was off because the moonlight coming in from the window was so strong.

The purple-veined clouds were gone as if they never were.

Mika couldn’t understand why she woke up, her body and mind were sensing _something_ was wrong, but she was so sleepy, and a child, she didn’t understand what her natural instincts were reacting to. She scratched the side of her head, and noticed then, that part of her hair was standing up. Slowly she touched around her head and felt all the frizzies, “Huh?”

Something inside was screaming _'this is bad!'_

Mika looked as if she was plagued by static electricity, she felt her arms, the back of her neck, it was all standing up on end, the realization fully waking her up.

The house’s security system was on emergency power that was quickly waning, the generator was troubleshooting why it wasn’t connecting with house’s own grid. The camera on the right side picked up movement before it lost juice.

The home security alarm tried to trip, but the screen only flashed as its power reserves were bleeding dry. It would flicker again and again, and it was this flashing light from the control panel in the master bedroom that finally started to stir Yuuri and Victor awake.

Mika, totally fascinated by her hair standing on end didn’t notice the shadow rising outside the window.

_Tap, tap, tap._

Mika looked up.

_Tap, tap, tap._

She looked towards the doorway, “…..Hello?”

_Tap, tap….tap._

It was coming from behind her, Mika rubbed her eyes, wiping away the sleep sand and letting them blur into focus on their bedroom window.

_Tap, tap, tap._

She saw it, the outline of a single small hand and wrist raised from the window frame tapping on the window, a single finger making contact while all the other digits were softly curled in reserve. It was leaving red prints on the glass. Mika started to pant. Their bedroom was on the second floor.

Fear didn’t hit Mika first, it was bewilderment. _Is that a hand? Is that really a hand?_

_Tap, tap, tap._

_Where is the rest of it? I’m up high, on the second house part, is the arm that long? Did it climb up?_

_Tap, tap, tap._

_How big is it? How big is it? HOW BIG IS IT –_

_Tap, tap, tap._

The hand froze. As did the air in Mika’s lungs –

Yuuri sat up in bed, rubbing his face, (Victor stretched) his sleepy eyes trying to adjust to the darkness of the room, and the stupid flashing light from the alarm system wasn’t helping…_wait a minuet –_

All the fingers began to move slowly, not in a wave, but in a pattern, as if the hand was testing out how a hand is _supposed_ to move…..Then, something else began to rise from behind the frame, larger, round, the crown of a head, bent back, almost horizontal, but just enough to where Mika would see the wide, _wide _white outline of eyes with pupils totally dilated and solid black, the head’s mouth completely open – cut far larger than any human could unhinge their jaws – exposing teeth that were sparking like a broken electric socket –

Yuuri woke right up once he realized what had happened, a terrified gasp escaping him that all but slapped Victor awake – _“Victor”_ –

_“Honey what” –_

_“The power is out!!!”_

Mika was so scared she couldn’t move, _she couldn’t move_, her breathing was erratic, she couldn’t think, she didn’t know what to do until the head made a noise, an awful noise like it wanted to scream but was choking on its own throat – then it began to shake violently as electricity was surging through it – the head raised up and pulled itself back – it’s neck thin as a pencil, as a tube, _wiring?!_ _It was going to strike the glass – !!!_

Mika screamed at the same time the city sirens finally went off – _“MOMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA” –_

The Mongrel broke the glass with the head the same time Yuuri and Victor burst into the twins’ rooms – Mila jumped up awake, saw the Mongrel at the window and joined Mika in screaming as their parents snatched them out of bed and out of the room as the Mongrel scrambled in through the window, snarling, bleeding everywhere – body spider-like of human limbs, wiring, poles – junk given motor-functions – it’s thumping metal footsteps charging towards the family – Victor kicked the door shut – the Mongrel crashed into it, the door shaking profusely as the Mongrel banged into it over and over with all its limbs – giving Yuuri and Victor time to run with their children down the stairs, heading towards the safe room, Victor handing a screaming Mila over to Yuuri before his Alpha instincts consumed him, his Unicorn Fauna Form triggered – Yuuri covered the twins’ eyes, no matter how pretty their Fauna Forms looked, transforming into them was something straight out of a nightmare, but thankfully, transformation only lasts a couple seconds before he was the beauty Mika drew him as and more; his clothes lay tattered on the floor – with Victor’s much larger form, he barely fit in the hall, but he moved so gracefully and carefully, his speed to escort his family never wavered, his hooves loudly clopping on the hardwood floors –

Just as they reached the safe room, they skidded to a stop - _the door open when it shouldn’t be_ \- Yuuri and Victor then noticed another window was broken in by a sudden gust of wind hitting them – and within the total darkness of the safety room, were two glowing red eyes and sparking canine teeth - the sound of crunching metal could be heard, the Mongrel was eating the electrical ware stored in the room – then they heard the twins’ door overhead break open –

Yuuri clutched their crying children, his instincts burning, eyes dark, ringlets glowing, he hissed and snarled and DARED the beast to make a move – he could trigger his Fauna Form, but this space was too small for him to be of much use but be a giant target when the goal is to LIVE – _although he may not have a choice – !_

Victor put himself between the Mongrel in the safe room and his family, his Alpha eyes sharp, iris glowing light blue – the other Mongrel and its many legs tumbled all about upstairs, it’s cry like a hollow gasp – the movement of its body shook the house, the cut of its claws sounding through the walls as if it was right in the room – the Mongrel in the safe room warbled like a bird, the core that held its being together glistened and pulsed_ – _the fast heavy steps above made a small chandelier fall from the hallway the family just exited – the spider-like Mongrel came down the stairwell, it was on the ceiling, its appendages twisting about like greedy fingers looking to grab the closest thing to it –

Victor reared up and whinnied, he was going to use himself as a distraction to give his family time to escape, _but no_ – another broken growl outside alerted them of a _third_ Mongrel – Mika screaming as she saw the face of a very dead young person with gouged out eyes opening and closing their mouth and a random animal paw being rubbed all over the window – _cracking it_ – the head started sizzling and shaking as a strong electrical current ran through it – Yuuri’s instincts were screaming at him to RUN and FIGHT at the same time –

_God in heaven help us PLEASE –_

Yuuri made up his mind – if nothing else, he could transform and wrap himself around Mika and Mila, becoming a living shield against the Mongrels – but Victor would never willingly let that happen – he would DIE before his family ever came to harm – the Mongrels had their prey in sight, their only instinct to gather and eat, gather and _eat, eat, eat, EAT –_

The spider-like Mongrel dropped down to the floor – Victor charged it, swung his body around, hind legs up and kicked the Mongrel right into the safe room clumping it up with the safe room Mongrel – he wasted no time, Victor threw himself against the safe room door, moving its heavy frame with his heavy body to click lock as the Mongrels scrambled inside tearing each other apart and merge, tearing and merge, tearing and merge, the cores calling out – drawn together, be one, _bigger, bigger, more, MORE – the cores combined –_

A stupid move one might think, but the goal was to buy time to let their family escape – Victor turned his attention to the third mongrel that now had burst through the window, Yuuri leaping back out of the line of fire – that mongrel looked like a quadruped of some kind, it did not attack, Victor charged it regardless, the Mongrel stood up on its back “legs”, revealing its “belly” and a stitched together face of different people – Victor reared up, tipped the monster over, and pinned the beast down on its back, _he was going to trample it till it broke apa –_

The eyes that made up the patched-on face were blue, eyes bluer than Victor’s.

Victor froze.

The Mongrel grabbed Victor with two other appendages popping out from its side and threw him off itself as if he was toy – he landed hard on his side breaking a table in half –

_“VICTOR!!!”_

_“DADDY!!” –_

Victor pushed himself up fast, he was okay, ready to fight – but the Mongrel didn’t strike, it didn’t move, it had completely stopped, it did not, _would not_ attack.

It “looked” all about as if it was discovering its sentience. It touched at its limbs, it touched at its body, then it “looked” at Victor, Yuuri, Mika, and Mila….

It took several steps back, its body shaking, _heaving,_ it clutched itself, a mouth opened on its side and _screamed._

Its screams were just like a child’s.

Yuuri’s hand went over his mouth and screamed just the same –

_Victor wouldn’t accept it –_

The safe room’s door in one strike was knocked down from inside – the Mongrel emerged anew, and even more horrific now that it had combined with the spider-like one, made of parts of several dogs, human torso and legs, human heads, arms where they shouldn’t be lights, ele-car, and inconspicuous appliance parts and wiring – it looked hunched over like a curious primate with smushed in eyes to match its smushed in head –

An orifice gushed out blood, then a gurgling, choking sound –

**“h-OUH-**e…_UM-L_p, _m-_**E**” –

Then its would-be head snapped off to the side, a plasma bullet running through it at the same time another blasted through its double-core, another shot, another – each taking out a vital section of the Mongrel and before it could even hit the ground, the Mongrel’s functions were totally dispersed. Core dissipated, and its body fell apart in a heap of limbs, oil, and blood.

The blue-eyed Mongrel had vanished.

Paced footsteps came up to the home as a robot, former weapon of war re-purposed for protection, an Empyrean Guard, literally walked through the wall; this model resembling robo-centaurs.

The fight was over, the Metal Mongrel Defense Force arrived for its duty, but not everyone in this family was accounted for.

Victor moved to go to Ruri’s house –

_“DADDY DON’T GO, DON’T GO” –_

_“DADDY” –_

_“DADDY!!!!!”_

In theory, Yuuri knew keeping the twins calm in a time of crisis must be done, in practice, it was fucking impossible; Mika and Mila screamed and cried their throats raw, Yuuri only able to press their wailing selves into his chest to mute their screeching. His pounding heart against their heads wasn’t helping either, Yuuri was so terrified he was trembling, and for the life of him, he couldn’t stop – “Victor, _Victor”–_

Victor was sure Yuuri was screaming after him too, but the Guard’s booming voice spoke over them all –

** _“Civilians accounted for, Victor Nikiforov, Yuuri Katsuki, Mika” –_ **

_Ruri Nakamura_ Victor thought –

Victor trotted though the hole in the wall the Guard came through, past the side of their house, the window to the twin’s room broken in, a river of red running from the window sill, as if the window itself was mortally wounded. The trail of blood had trekked across their yard, from Ruri’s yard, up to her house, and through an open door where there was a puddle of blood and a discarded partial torso and leg that still had a sock on its foot.

Before Victor’s trot could even become a gallop, he came to a moving stop, till his legs locked in place.

An Empyrean Guard was exiting the home from the front, ducking through another broken out wall, and detected Victor. It walked over to him and stated, **_“Everyone in that house is deceased, I must ask you to not enter. Gather only life-sustaining necessities, and go to the nearest shelter available immediately.”_**

Victor fell out of his Fauna Form as he was hit with such emotion, he dropped to his knees, his limbs burning as his cells configured to his base human identity.

**_“I am sorry,”_** said the robot, and it moved on.

Yuuri was waiting for Victor with their kids on the other side of the house, he could smell the blood out in the night air, _he could smell it and there was so much of it,_ and he didn’t want their children to see anymore, he didn’t want to see what had become of Ruri’s family, her knew, _he knew,_ he was starting to get numb, and that wasn’t good, he had to be strong for his children, they needed their parents now more than ever.

It felt like forever before Victor returned, he was clothed, stopping by the first-floor closet before meeting up with his family, and once they saw him, Yuuri couldn’t reach Victor fast enough, the twins launched out of his arms and straight into their father _– “OOF” –_

Victor caught them, and they all sunk down together, Yuuri joining them in the hug, wrapping his arms around Victor and the kids, Victor wrapping his arms around them all in turn, pressing a kiss to Yuuri and to the tops of the twins’ heads.

The family had a moment as defense, rescue, and anit-Mongrel measures arrived, their flashing lights covering the neighborhood in red, blue, and white.

Yuuri nuzzled Victor, he spoke with a soaked, wobbly voice, “They’re moving everyone into the center-shelter tonight, the entire city is getting swept.”

Victor nodded.

Mika looked up to Victor, sniffling, eyes and nose puffy and wet, “Daddy…is Ruri in heaven?”

Yuuri also looked to Victor, Mila too.

Victor’s voice was hoarse and quiet, “…Yes, she is.”

It took a couple seconds to hit, then both twins started crying so hard their tears fell before they made another sound.

Yuuri and Victor held them close, leaning on each other, it was all they could do in the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here goes the next paaart....


	2. And Not

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you want to read this on "Hard Mode" listen to the soundtrack of "It Follows" >:3c

The trek to the center-shelter wasn’t a long one by vehicle, but on foot it felt like an eternity. The pulse storm’s damage expanded beyond the creation of Mongrels and that was the draining of precious energy reserves and fuckery of electronics in general. Ele-cars didn’t run, or only ran on their limited fuel reserves, which wasn’t taking anyone much of anywhere (or they were dismantled by a Mongrel in need of limbs or exoskeleton).

Public transport was completely inoperable with the power grid shuffling what energy was saved from the pulse storm to the most important functions, leaving things that looked like they should work, sitting uselessly with residual power that was quickly running out. Traffic signals flashed aimlessly, electric rails sat solar charged yet with empty, dark trains, and control ports with flashing buttons that slowly went out one by one.

Some smaller stations on the outskirts of the city spared the brunt of the storm were already starting to get overworked with officials pumping as much current as they could to anit-Mongrel measures, readying pulse weapons, barriers, and charging up reserve Empyrean Soldiers and Guards; since every major power station was completely dark, nothing could be spared.

Roads were already outfitted with active Empyrean Soldiers as Guards were on the hunt to seek and destroy any Mongrel found. The emergency lights flashing on the robots was the only light offered save for the moon overhead, but unlike the moon, it was harsh on eyes already strained from stress and sleep deprivation.

Soldiers with different color schemes and more alluring lighting were independently owned and had to be marked as such; these robots were pay-to-hire protection. Some dislike these companies and claim they profited off of peoples’ fears, only dispersing their inventory whenever a crisis occurred. The companies claimed they were the same as security-for-hire businesses, like bodyguards, and nothing more, only their guards will not die, they just need hardware upgrades. Perhaps the salt in the wound was that they were spin-offs from the governments attempting to protect/profit what civilization they had left.

Disgusted with, _things,_ Yuuri and Victor helped beef up their city’s defenses by purchasing an entire squadron to give everyone a fair chance of getting the protection they deserve, enough so each subdivision had at least one Guard and two Soldiers on call at all times, still, that’s one city within one prefecture within one country on a planet in a post-apocalyptic era with wandering beasts made up of the scraps of an era of war – and as proven tonight, fate rolled her die, and those that lived, lived, likewise, there were those who did not. Nothing was a guarantee in this world, as Mother Nature loved to remind everyone fighting for a place to walk amongst her ravaged gardens.

Ruri’s death reverberated loudly in Victor’s thoughts, and seeing a trembling mother trying to swipe her card on a For-Hire Soldier’s arm while an Empyrean Soldier was stationed just feet from her, only made his blood boil.

“Daddy you’re warm.”

“I know sweetheart, I don’t want you to get cold, the night air is very chilly.”

“Okay.”

Yuuri and Victor carried their children wrapped snuggly in blankets, Yuuri holding Mika, and Victor holding Mila. Both parents also hauling night-bags filled with necessities, Victor hauling an extra bag stuffed to the brim with Mika’s special food and general snacks. Yuuri’s shoulder was wet from the silent tears Mika was crying. Every now and then Yuuri would coo to her and wipe her cheeks, but nothing would help the pain right now, she just wanted mom, she was terrified out of her mind, nothing felt safe but Yuuri’s immediate warmth.

The Empyrean Guard offered to escort them (as was protocol with high-profile citizens such as Yuuri and Victor) but they declined, the Guard would be better use hunting Mongrels; Yuuri and Victor had Fauna Forms, they would be able to defend their family, yet they couldn’t help but wonder, why did it come to this?

Did the city – _country _– not have measures to drain pulse storms of their diseased lighting and burn the energy out? A majority of the storms that produce Mongrels form out in the oceans and come inland, rarely do they form on land – and there are supposed to be warnings for those that do! Every house has a safe room!…Unless….Victor thought of what Ruri said, that her ‘dad’ had information that officials were worried about the power grid having some of the diseased lighting accidentally processed into the power supply….The storms have magnetic bases that defied all logic, perhaps, in some upside down sense, the storm was pulled out of thin air by the power grid calling out of the atmosphere the recipe to make an near unprecedented onslaught of Mongrel creation – _like it was burning off steam_ – oh, heads are going to roll for such a terrible, terrible oversight….How many people died tonight that would otherwise still be alive?

_Maybe it was done on purpose._

The Guard scanned the remains of the Mongrels, and identified Ruri’s mother and father were indeed part of its composition.

Yuuri and Victor had no thought other than being sick to their stomachs, even further since they could conclude the blue-eyed Mongrel….

Yuuri was trying to keep the lump in his throat at bay, but several sobs escaped him regardless; his tears were left unwiped, and his heart only choked further when Mika tried to hug him harder in return.

Mila was silent, but shivering (even with the blanket). Victor tried to warm her by rubbing her back through the fabric. She didn’t feel cold, she was just scared like her sister, but couldn’t communicate further and only clung to her dad as hard as Mika was clinging to Yuuri.

Victor had to tell himself over and over that there was nothing he could do for Ruri now. His family was still alive, and he must protect his family, _he must,_ so he listened, intently, mainly to his heart pounding (almost to the point that he was worried that was what was making Mila shiver so much). His instincts were still burning, his iris’ glowing, but his pupils weren’t slits; he was on stand-by for anything that dared to threaten his family, the slightest threat perceived would make its last move against him (never mind the bots out on sentry). His chest felt like it was carrying a rock, sharp and rolling; he ignored it.

Both parents were walking as close as they possibly could to each other, but the cold night wind stole any warmth they tried to keep between them.

Victor and Yuuri passed a couple with their three kids asking a Soldier about the center-shelter –

**“T-h-e-r-e i-s f-o-o-d a-n-d w-a-t-e-r, a-n-d p-l-a-c-e-s t-o s-l-e-e-p. T-h-e s-h-e-l-t-e-r h-a-s g-e-n-e-r-a-t-o-r-s t-h-a-t a-r-e r-e-s-i-l-i-e-n-t t-o a-l-l o-u-t-s-i-d-e i-n-t-e-r-f-e-r-e-n-c-e-s” –**

Yuuri shuddered, the Soldier’s voices always creeped him out since he was little. At least the Guards sound a little more, _human_. The Soldiers with their hard-mechanical voices, arched looking bodies, and beady red eyes always looked like they’re perpetually grouchy and about to pounce on someone or go on a murderous rampage.

Mila kept watching the Soldier as the couple thanked it, pointless, and walked on; it was only relaying recorded responses. The Solider, with its impressive gun arm, waved them bye, stiffly (you could hear its hydraulics wheezing), but the point got across.

“Daddy, are the Soldiers mad about what happened?” asked Mila, watching the robot return to its stand-by pose, Mila was interpreting its motions as someone stand-offish instead of a machine in need of some oiling.

“Robots do not have emotions like we do,” said Victor, “But the people that control them, that program them, tell them what do, they might be upset.”

“I’m upset.”

“I know sweetheart, we all are,” Victor nuzzled her and kissed the top of her head, “We’ll be at the shelter soon, and there we’ll be safe.”

“We were supposed to be safe at home. Will we really be safe at the shelter? Are more bad things going to happen? When is it going to stop?”

“It should be ending soon. You see all the Guards and Soldiers are out in full force, they’re making sure every nook and cranny of the city is safe.”

“How come they weren’t looking before?”

“They have to be deployed, and some are always on duty, but for a disaster as widespread as this, they’ll be overwhelmed without reinforcements…” Victor thought for a moment how much he should tell Mila, but ultimately decided it would be foolish that to tell anything other than the truth. “….The people that monitor the weather, the warning systems, some of them might get into deep, deep trouble, but you also have to think about the people that maintain the power stations. The power is out when it shouldn’t be and that can prevent a lot of precious services from going into effect, people over there are going to get in _a lot_ of trouble.”

“They should be. How can people prepare if other people are going the mess up and make people die anyway?”

A gruff man shoveling by decided to answer before Victor could – “Maybe somebody just had a bad squeeze” –

The look Victor gave the intruding man made him regret he ever uttered a word with Victor’s eyes going sharp (a look echoed by Yuuri with his eyes going black) –

“Daddy your eyes are scary again” –

A simultaneous growl from both parents made the stranger apologize and hurry along. The encounter drew the attention of Soldier, but it quickly deduced the risk was nil, protective parents gonna protective parent.

Mika made upset warbles, smushing her face against Yuuri’s neck before she started to cry loudly.

“Shh-shh-shh, sweetie it’s okay, it’s okay” – Yuuri and Victor stopped on the side of the road to help settle Mika, but Mika just could not calm down, especially not when her parent’s instincts were flaring because that always meant something was very WRONG – someone is going to DIE, and it’s not like they could just shut their instincts off, they could control them to an extent, Victor a little more-so, but during such a dangerous time, that was like asking your heart to stop beating, hence why both parents were a bit aggressive in ‘removing’ the stranger. Not that it helped in the end, so for the moment, the family was stopped on the roadside as others passed them and poor wailing Mika. Then Mila started to cry (a little quiet at least).

Despite being focused on their kids, the parents quickly sensed an approaching presence, an Empyrean Soldier walking up to them (some roll, some walk, this one walks like a ghost) – Yuuri wanted to snarl at it to **_go away –_**

The Soldier stopped before the parents, they saw the screen on the Soldier’s head change into a music icon, and it began to play an 8-bit version of Happy Birthday.

The girls were so caught off-guard by the gesture (Yuuri and Victor were too) that they almost instantly stopped crying and listened to the 8-bit song play itself out.

Once the song finished the robot’s screen made a bit-smiley face.

**“I-t i-s g-o-i-n-g t-o b-e a-l-r-i-g-h-t.”**

“…………..”

“…………..”

The twins sniffled, they were done crying (for now).

“Okay,” said Mika.

“Um, thank-you,” said Victor.

**“Y-o-u a-r-e w-e-l-c-o-m-e.”**

The parents gathered themselves and their kids up and moved on. Mika waving bye at the Soldier, the Soldier waving back, once again the robot’s hydraulics wheezing.

Yuuri rationed out to himself the Soldiers know how to deduce emotion, they know happy, sad, angry, ect – the song has ‘Happy’ in its title and it thought that it was best to help those who are sad; he wasn’t sure how that made him feel in the end, but he was grateful for its help.

When they arrived at the shelter, to say it was heavily guarded was an understatement. There were Empyrean droids there that neither Yuuri or Victor had ever seen before, perhaps they were a level higher than a Guard? There was _some_ media, but not much, they had their places to not interfere with the people filing in, all being directed to what they needed most: the medical bay (which was getting full fast), the sleeping quarters, food, restrooms, or just breathing space to have a safe moment and mourn what was lost.

“Look Daddy,” Mila pointed at one news-cab with the emblem of a country far away, “people from all over the world know what happened.”

“Yes, and they are very sad.”

“This is really, _really_ bad isn’t it?”

“Yes Mila, this is nigh unprecedented compared to when people didn’t have the protections we have now.”

“I bet they’re worried if it’s going to happen to them too.”

“Yes, I would imagine so.”

Mila nuzzled up to her father and Victor nuzzled her back –

“Honey,” came Yuuri’s voice, “Let’s go to the food bay.”

Mika was making a pouting face; half of her two snacks were sticking out of her mouth as she chewed lazily; Mika was done with snacks, baby girl wanted a MEAL –

“Mika chew baby, _chew, this is medicine too.”_

_“Gnar, gnar, gnar, gnar X<”_

Only after the suggestion did Victor realize he was starving, and in using his Fauna Form (and instincts on loop), he should have known better.

“Daddy your tummy made a funny noise.”

“Did it sound like this? _Pbbth~”_

Mila couldn’t help but smile, “No,” she giggled.

Victor keep blowing raspberries all the way to the food bay making both Mila and Mika (after chewing and swallowing) laugh; Yuuri thought he couldn’t possibly fall in love with Victor any more than he was now and he was only too happy to be proven wrong (at least once a month).

There was a line, but it was moving fast, you retrieved your food just like how you went through a cafeteria line at school. Food was prepped per everyone’s needs, if you needed to be very specific, you could have your finger pricked, and a meal would be made just for what your body demanded; there were machines involved, but they were heavily monitored and calibrated by a team of cafeteria personnel who were constantly loading food barrels down the line. Victor let in Yuuri first as he looked over all the options, his tummy growling harder.

_I want everything,_ was Victor’s first thought, _so do the Mongrels,_ was his second, and that cut his appetite in half.

Mika started tasting and sniffing the air, “mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm~”

Yuuri smiled, “Smells good huh baby?”

“Yes :3”

Anything to ease her feelings.

Mila held out her had to assess the temperature, “It feels like it’s hot.”

“Yes baby, very hot, it’s cooking, we can’t get too close, it’s got a lot of work to do. Here, let’s get in line over here.” Yuuri followed him.

“I like how momma cooks.”

“Me too, but these nice people and robots are going to feed _aaaaaaall _of these people.”

_“All of them?”_

_“Every single one,_ everyone who is hungry.”

“Who pays for it?”

“We all do.”

“I don’t.”

“No baby, I mean the adults, we put in a little of our money so that in times like these, we all get taken care of.”

“Well that’s nice.”

_When it actually works, yes. It wasn’t always like this._

Yuuri propped up Mika, “Here baby, hold your finger out like this, watch mommy, it’s not going to hurt, it’s just a little prick.” Yuuri had his finger done first, then Mika with a shaky hand did her’s second, the moment it was over, Yuuri took her hand pressed tiny kisses to it, “See? It’s all okay, and here comes our food!”

Yuuri had a stuffed plate, and Mika had almost a basket full; her eyes wide, dilated, mouth watering –

“Wait baby wait, let’s get to a table okay? We’re going, we’re going –”

“Daddy I’m not hungry,” said Mila as soon as momma’s attention was pulled –

_“Sweetpea are you sure?”_

“We have snacks.”

“At least a little something, _please.”_

Mila vehemently shook her head, Victor sighed and made a backup to get extra anyhow, that’s typically how this ended, she would get hungry watching Mika and eat off Yuuri’s and Victor’s plate; which is exactly what ended up happening.

They never chastised her for it, they were more worried why Mila sometimes played hardball with food; hopefully she’d grow out of it…

A Service Bot strolled up to them, asking the family if any of them had any special needs that needed to be met for this evening. Yuuri and Victor declined, they were okay. The bot still had to speak its spiel, that everything here tonight would be free of charge, food, medical needs, clothing, showers, charging stations, sleeping quarters, blah-bleh-blah, good, good at least. **“IF ANY FURTHER ASSISTANCE IS REQURIED, IT WILL BE JUDGED ON A CASE BY CASE BASIS.”**

…..Yuuri and Victor both thought that could have been worded a little better…Like it shouldn’t be judged at all.

A sharp cry made Mika almost jump out of her skin – Mila clung to her father like Velcro – both parents searched rapidly for the source, and found it was coming from the medical bay, one poor Omega (maybe more) was giving birth from the stress, and Yuuri’s heart went out to the new parent(s?) because this was about the worst scenario to bring a newborn into.

His abdomen ached. Victor noticed.

After calming their kids back down, getting a breath of fresh air, walking around the facility a bit, they went to the sleeping quarters. They were packed in a little tight, but there was elbow room. Just a temporary place before people can pretend to back to how things were before, and yet do so gracefully.

Victor saw a couple kids drawing on a sheet of paper and cursed himself for not bringing anything to occupy the girls should they need it.

“Think you can get some rest love?”

Mika just shrugged. Mila too.

“How we feeling?”

“Sad.”

“Sad :c”

“We’re sad too.”

Honestly the girls didn’t want to do anything else but cuddle up to mom and dad.

….Mika and Mila knew what Metal Mongrels were, but, not to the fullest extent. They knew those things were dangerous, they were supposed to know that if one was near, they would smell its terrible scent, or feel the air get charged with energy that made their hairs stand up. They had never seen a real one before, the city had never had a breach as severe as this before, they weren’t depicted as gruesome as they truly were so the children wouldn’t be frightened – so many wanted to preserve that innocence, that oblivious happiness with no cloud or doubt of what could and couldn’t happen but what to know to be safe – _if you know, then you’re safe_ – the worst lie every parent champions, since nothing could be further from the truth.

So many children tonight were having their semblance of comfort destroyed and rebuilt around the creatures that would hunt them from the corners of their minds to the ends of the earth.

Victor’s thoughts wandered to the blue-eyed Mongrel that did not, would not attack. And the two that became one…it, did it really try to, _speak?_

Mika shifted from under her covers and looked up at her parents, Victor and Yuuri looking through news outlets on their coms, cell service was spotty given all the traffic on strained towers (and they were able to reach out to family on and off-shore that they were okay).

Mika just watched her parents for a moment, watching how the light from the coms illuminated their faces, how they blinked, how their eyes read the screen. She was almost sorry to speak, but, “Mommy, Daddy,” they looked over, “………..” Mika looked pained.

“You alright sweetie? Are you hungry?”

Mika shook her head, “……How come the Mongrels kill us? Do they hate us?”

Yuuri answered, “Mongrels don’t have feelings. They only act….And…their instinct is to…make themselves, more….With whatever they find, or take.”

“Even people?”

“Even people.”

“….So Ruri is in a Mongrel….She could still be alive…?”

Seeing that flicker of hope in Mika’s eyes hurt. Yuuri shook his head, Victor answered, “Once you become a part of a Mongrel, you’re not ‘you’ anymore.” He didn’t want to get anymore specific.

“The blue-eyed Mongrel ran away. Maybe it was scared? You scared it?”

“It wasn’t scared of Dad, it was scared of the Guard,” said Mila.

Victor’s pride: -1 point.

“Daddy is still scary to people though.”

Victor wasn’t sure how to feel about that. Certain, maybe.

“Mommy if you transform, I bet aaaaalllll the Mongrels will run away,” said Mila.

“I’m not so sure about that love,” said Yuuri, “but, you can bet that your father and I will do everything we can to protect you two. Those Mongrels might not be scared of us, but we aren’t scared of them either.”

**Bold.** Victor clutched Yuuri’s hand, Yuuri squeezed back. It’s to be expected for their kids to question everything now, and Yuuri and Victor planned to show up to every inquiry.

“Besides us, the Empyrean Gear is here to protect you too,” said Victor, “You see how many of them are walking around, some, your mother and I have never seen before. There are many, many, many people working as hard as they can right now so that what happened tonight will never, ever happen again.”

Mika or Mila did not respond with a reassured glance or sigh or word, instead Mila replied with, “I hope they try harder.”

They learned tonight that any system may have error. What’s to prevent another human making another accident?

“We do too,” said Victor.

The girls had no more questions, they were exhausted like everyone else. Combine that with Yuuri and Victor softly stroking their hair, they fell asleep. Victor nudged Yuuri to lie down now too, Yuuri gave a look of protest, _and_ _when are ‘you’ going to sleep mister?_ Victor kissed Yuuri’s shoulder and neck, and promised he was right behind him; Yuuri caught Victor’s lips in a guiding kiss and held him to it.

Anywho, Yuuri only laid down when Victor laid down, curled protective around their kids. Yuuri closed his eyes, whiiiiiile Victor did not. He was still propped up on his elbow, taking in the scene around him and his family. Everyone was some mix of down-trodden, defeated, sad, scared, lost, worried, angry, and all in-between.

Despite his promise, his instincts gnawed in the back of his mind that he was sleepy when he shouldn’t be, how could an Alpha rest now? _Now?_ But he knew if he didn’t, he may not have the strength for what could come next. He used his instincts the longest, he used his Fauna Form, he _must_ rest. He couldn’t, wouldn’t let his family feel his absence. He leaned over and kissed Yuuri on his cheek, and his two girls on their forehead. Nothing, _nothing_ was more precious to him.

“……..”

An Empyrean Guard stationed itself near the family, and Victor let his body take that as an excuse to close his eyes, not just for a moment, but to fall into a deep, deep, sleep…..

They were home. It was remarkably clean, and smelled full of chemicals. Mila was at the kitchen table drawing with purpose.

_Sweetheart what are you drawing?_

Mila didn’t respond. Something dark dripped off the table.

_Mila? Where’s momma and Mika?_

There was a dog barking somewhere far away. The windows were dark.

_…Makkachin?_

Back to Mila, Victor picked up a picture, one after the other, each one depicting Yuuri, Mika, and Mila getting ripped to pieces by a monster in red and black, the drawings were simple, but the agony, the terror on each face was clear –

_Mila –! Why are you drawing this?!_

Suddenly, rivets of red started coming down his hands from the piece, like the paper itself was bleeding – Victor looked up, the gruesome imagery of Mila’s drawings of Yuuri and Mika in pieces was made real, he looked to Mila, she was looking right at him, with a broken head and no eyes –

**_“y_**O**_u c_A_n’_**_t** P**_**r**_o**tE**_c**_t U_**_s**.”**_

Victor woke with his hand over his mouth in an attempt to stifle his scream – instincts burning – he’d choke himself if he had to – _to not wake…!_ He was breathing fast, his mind was racing, his heart pounding just as rapidly –

The Empyrean Guard stationed near them didn’t even budge, Victor was not the first human it detected screaming or wailing without being in danger or without physical injury, its services were no good to them yet, but it still searched its files on any updates on what to do to help.

Yuuri stirred, and woke, Victor hanging his head and cursing himself, he hated, _hated that –_

_“Honey?”_ Yuuri felt Victor was in distress, he put on his glasses and saw just HOW MUCH with him bent over and his eyes sharp and glowing – _“Victor” –_

The rock rolling around Victor’s chest finally found its way into his throat – _“I’m okay,”_ his voice was hoarser and more gravely than before.

_“Obviously not,”_ Yuuri hissed, he scooted closer to his husband, his movements soft and gentle and welcoming to whatever Victor needed, but he just continued to look down. Yuuri touched their heads together, “Talk to me Victor, what can I do for you?”

Victor cleared his throat, it sounded like a horse was trying to force its vocal cords to make human words instead of a cry. Mika and Mila only moved a little, resettling quickly into sleep.

_“Closer, please.”_

Yuuri put an arm around his husband, pressing kisses to the side of his face, nose, corner of his eye, wherever he could reach, they nuzzled, and only after Victor’s heart felt Yuuri’s warmth, did it begin to ease its erratic rate, and his breathing even out.

He closed his piercing eyes and opened with those of a grieving father.

“Was it a nightmare?” Yuuri asked.

Victor nodded.

“Do you want to talk about it? Or you just need me?”

“….You, _all,_ (*HEAVE*) were _gone” –_ and that was all Victor got out before he used both of his hands to stop his excessive sobbing from waking their children, tears streaming down his cheeks.

…They hadn’t fully allowed themselves to grieve over this yet, Victor especially, Yuuri had let it out little by little, but now was as good a time as any to cry, to let it out, the pain in their hearts was too much from the beginning, too much now to leave it idle any further.

Yuuri held Victor as he cried and cried and cried, Yuuri joining him, pressing tearful kisses to his husband, telling him _he’s an amazing father, a loving father, a wonderful husband,_ the both of them doing their best to keep quiet for the sake of their sleeping children.

In their state of vulnerability, Yuuri and Victor did not sense the impending danger till the hairs on their arms and the back of their necks stood straight up – their instincts tipping them off milliseconds before the near-by Guard’s lights turned from ‘safety’ to **_‘WARNING, WARNING, WARNING’ – _**shouting outside – _inside_ –

_“HORDE APPROACHING, HORDE APPROACHING” –_

_“Horde?!”_

A crumpled military vehicle smashed through the glass-wall, sending shards and debris flying – only stopping after another Guard leapt and caught it before it could roll over and crush a family – the Guard’s legs landing just on the sides of a little boy and girl – the floor crunching under the weight of the bot – their parents pulled the children out of harms’ way and _RAN –_

The second, the breath, the quiet of everyone waking up in shock from the yelling – the glass-wall shattering – exploded into chaos! The shelter lights flickered once, twice, then went out, leaving the dim orange glow of emergency lights – all Empyrean gear moved swiftly into position to confront the approaching Mongrels, their gun arms already firing a rapid amount of plasma ammo, creating a strobe light effect against the dark, against their own hazard lighting and the people running for their lives –

Everything was so loud, Yuuri couldn’t hear Victor right next to him and vice versa, all they could hear was the rapid-fire shots, screaming, _screaming,_ glass crashing, walls crumbling, and then a roaring, otherworldly moan that signaled a Metal Mongrel of _immeasurable_ strength was approaching with its kin – the girls woke up in absolute shock – the squeeze of their parents’ arms around them jumpstarted their hearts again –

Victor had Mika, Yuuri had Mila – _and the snack bag!_ – in one arm, their other hands clasping each other as they bolted – their instincts fully burning once again, Yuuri’s eyes black with yellow rings, Victor’s iris’ glowing blue and pupils slits – the pair dodging or jumping over any obstacle together – Victor leading – the stampede of people threatening to separate them, bumping into them, making them grasp each other’s hands so tightly their bones ached – second only to them holding onto their children who were screaming right in their ears, but they never heard them over the chaos –

For every plan, cost, training, and preparation, it meant nothing compared to the panic of the populace and disregard for anyone other than themselves. Like a herd running from wolves, the primary goal was to outrun the carnivores, but sometimes even prey made efforts to save their kin, yet here, in the confines of the center-shelter, there was no comradery, they were like fish swirling in a barrel – there were only the saved, and the not – the human – _and the not_ –

One such victim was someone trying to transform into their Fauna Form, a lion, but they were distracted – unfocused, unnerved – and only transformed halfway, they looked like a sculpture of mud frozen mid-melt, they were laying on the floor, breathing heavily, twitching, limbs moving lethargically, you couldn’t tell their nose from their mouth – teeth where they shouldn’t be – eyes looking this way that for help that would never come as they ended up trampled – not even able to cry out – not that anyone could hear them anyway – their trampled body only creating mush that made other people slip and fall, impeding their efforts to get away from a Mongrel that made it in, the monster only visible by its cores and joints glowing, swaying and crawling low like a lizard, grabbing the screaming people and disassembling them down to their organs like Lego pieces to add to their composite body –

The process of a Mongrel building their body is thus, like how a pregnant mother lets their body make a baby, how we observe a wound heal, these processes are done without our explicit knowledge or direction on the matter, its written in strands of DNA dictated by years and years of evolution, or in this case, sudden, and abrupt, violent mutation – the Mongrel is absorbing, welding on its new pieces with energy pulsing from its core, the edges glowing like a soldering iron – and there in the glow, it is re-writing the make-up of cells and atoms, the basis of matter, and stitching it back together to grow itself anew with each part – each additional core it may obtain. More advanced Mongrels have a limb specially dedicating to weaving on new appendages and bulk – such as one currently biting into an Empyrean Soldier to tear off its gun-arm –

By now Victor had led (pulled really) Yuuri towards the back of the center-shelter, he knew the layout of the building by heart, even in the dark, even when there was only the remote emergency light here and there, he knew which way to go, as a Mythical, he had the sense of electroreception, much like the Mongrels – as a Unicorn, that sense was developed much further – the couple could hear their pants, their running steps, the majority of sounds of chaos and death were getting left behind – and the couple knew they were being followed by a small group of survivors and something unpleasant up in the vent shafts –

Victor suddenly skidded to a stop, breaking his grip on Yuuri’s hand to hold out his arm to brace him in stopping too (Yuuri nearly running into him anyway), before grabbing Yuuri’s hand again and yanking him down another hallway, “THIS WAY!! THIS WAY!!” he called back to the others – screams leading on the group saw what Victor saw – a Mongrel on the side dissecting a dead person, twisting off their leg – _twist, crunch, pop –_ that one direction change giving the Mongrel in the vents time to gang up on the group – Victor and Yuuri could hear it thumping ahead like how they heard the spider-like Mongrel thumping about upstairs in their home –

_“STOP!”_ someone cried out –

_“YOU HAVE TO KEEP MOVING – KEEP MOVING!!”_

** _THUMP – THUMP – THUMP – THUMP –_ **

Yuuri felt someone grab his shirt and yank him back – _almost out of Victor’s grip_ –

“STOP IT” Mila yelled – she tried to hit that person – a young man, he was wide-eyed and fearful as anyone –

_“LET GO” –_

_“My brother fell!” –_

But neither Yuuri nor Victor could spare a moment – they could see the movement of the ceiling – the vent _– it’s right over them – !!_

_“Please! He ne” – _

The Mongrel’s sharp appendages shot straight down and piked the young man straight down the middle, everyone scattering, Yuuri jumped back – Victor pulled him back – more pikes shot down, one right on the grip of Yuuri and Victor’s hands, making them cry out – separating them –

The Mongrel’s core pulsed, creating a magnetic pull of none but its desire for parts – Yuuri’s cells and some other poor soul matched the magnetic calling – Yuuri threw Mila to Victor as the Mongrel pulled him up by magnetism alone – the other person was piked – !

_“NO – !”_

_“MOMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA” –_

The pike meant to skewer Yuuri was met with transforming flesh that slipped around it and formed into Yuuri’s Chimera Fauna Form – extending his wings, his long serpentine body made the magnetic grip stutter –

Yuuri’s hiss broke into an all-out _ROAR _– the Mongrel tried to pike him again, but Yuuri struck first, bucking/ whipping his body – flapping his wings, blowing everyone away – smashing him into the Mongrel above, the ceiling panels collapsed – the Mongrel fell out, a mass of swirling limbs like rabid water swirling in on itself – Yuuri coiled himself around the Mongrel _crushing, crushing, crushing_ – not enough – it stabbed him several times – he grabbed it by his jaws and slammed it wall to wall, ground to wall – to every surface he could swing the creature into, slamming it over and over, parts of it falling off here and there – the Mongrel couldn’t aim it’s pike limbs – Yuuri bit one in half, ripped another off – he finally grabbed the Mongrel again with his long body and went for the core, jaws snapping around it – AND PULLED –

The core popped in a splash of light, shocking Yuuri – and the Mongrel fell to pieces, Yuuri fell back, totally collapsed –

_“YUURI!!” –_

_“MOMMA!!!”_

_“MOMMAAAAAAAA!!!!”_

Yuuri was still in his Fauna Form, he was panting, bleeding, wearily he lifted his head to greet his family – Victor hugged Yuuri’s large head, the twins right behind him – _“Oh my god Yuuri” –_

“YOU BEAT IT!! YOU BEAT IT MOMMA!!!”

“Momma, momma here are your glasses,” said Mila –

_Thank-you baby, they won’t fit this big head though…._

“I have the snack bag!” said Mika – the bag was dripping – “It’s wet” –

A survivor ran up, “YOU’RE A DRAGON?”

“Chimera,” said Mila –

_“He can fly! He can fly!”_

_“They can get us out of here!”_

_“Quick get him up” –_

“GET OFF HIM” – Victor shoved them back – Yuuri pulled himself away from hands other than his family – he tried to stand, stumbling but steady, the stab wounds already not as bad as before, his Fauna perk was he healed incredibly fast –

_Please, please stop, don’t touch me – ! _

Someone made the mistake of reaching for Mika and Mila and Yuuri snapped at them, he used his tail to swipe them away like gnats –

** _ENOUGH!!!!!_ **

The other Mongrel with its new legs emerged from around the corner, spreading panic – it was as tall as the hallway was – it rushed the group, sparks flying off its body – Victor scooped up the twins, jumped up on Yuuri’s back and Yuuri took off! His weaving body easily outrunning the Mongrel who caught up to the screaming people they left behind – Yuuri rounding the corner before the twins could see the creature tear in to them as well –

_I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry – !!_

Their screams echoed all down the hallway – Yuuri didn’t realize he was foaming at the mouth, his panic, his adrenaline, his instincts were overtaking everything that made him ‘Yuuri Katsuki’ –

_Outside, I need to get outside! We’ll die in here! We’ll die in here!!!_

Victor could feel his husband starting to lose it – he couldn’t not, WOULD NOT – let his husband go feral!!

_“Yuuri, Yuuri, listen to my voice love, listen to me, focus, focus” –_

_I love you Victor –_

“Mommy!!”

_My babies – !!_

Yuuri got a hold of himself – he glided up a stairwell, up another, and another, round the corner, down another hall – the sounds of chaos went in and out of focus – who was winning – the mongrels or the bots they knew not – they ran past people, parts of people – a Mongrel climbing up the side of the building shot down by a bot –

_HANG ON – _

Victor clutched the girls, the bag, as Yuuri used his wings to propel himself through a locked door – and they were on the roof – !! The cold night air hit them like a slap in the face – the breath of freedom charged Yuuri’s muscles – in one powerful flap they would be out of that death trap – in one second the feeling of freedom – another wingbeat and they’d be clear – a second more – despair – Victor felt Mila get pulled against his grip – both parents turned to see at the same time a Mongrel – from where who knows where – that had leapt up and snagged her by a single thin tendril, thin as a jump rope – Victor pulled Mila back – he tried to pull the tendril off but it stuck to her like glue – Yuuri grabbed the Mongrel by his mouth and threw it – alas!

There was no time for Victor to communicate to Yuuri the Mongrel’s hold on Mila – and when the Mongrel flew with such force – so went Mila, torn out of Victor’s grasp –

The Mongrel fell, Mila fell, the realization – the horror – a parent’s worst nightmare – the moment an eternity watching Mila’s face of shock as the Mongrel grabbed her mid-air –

_NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO –_

The Mongrel’s entire body opened up like jaws, but before they clamped shut – they got a mouthful of Unicorn – Yuuri grabbed Mila back with his jaws – leaving the Mongrel and Victor to crash back down on the rooftop – Victor swung up, bruised up, and began trampling, kicking, biting, doing all he could – the Mongrel matching him move for move –

_TAKE OUR CHILDREN AND RUNI!!_

Yuuri’s moment of hesitation allowed Mika to leap off his back and landed on her feet down below –

_MIKA STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP –_

Yuuri went to grab her and saw Mika’s eyes were wide-WIDE open, eyes glowing, _instincts?_! Her mouth was smeared with a dark liquid, the snack bag fell off Yuuri’s back next and splattered with red everywhere – blood – the bag was drenched in _blood_ – and Mika, _Mika ate – !_

Yuuri put two and two together fast – _she’s feral!_

Mika snarled and charged towards the Mongrel before Yuuri could grab her – as a Hippogriff she moved like grease lighting under instincts, but now as a child, feral at that, she couldn’t control it – imagine Victor’s shock when he saw his pint sized baby girl leap with fire and fury into a beast that was matching him, _him, a Mythical,_ move for move – Yuuri charged forward, leaving Mila back –

** _Ba-bump –_ **

The Mongrel grabbed Victor by his leg and threw him into Yuuri –

** _Ba-bump –_ **

Mika pounded the Mongrel with her little fists, kicked, bit, and clawed –

** _Ba-bump –_ **

But she may as well as be up against a brick wall –

** _Ba-bump –_ **

The Mongrel had the same eyes as her father, a shade colder and darker, Mika looked directly into them and was snapped out of her feral streak – her eyes losing their glow as fast as they got them –

** _Ba-bump –_ **

Yuuri and Victor both charged the Mongrel, but neither would ever be fast enough –

** _Ba-bump –_ **

Mila watched her sister get impaled through the stomach by the Mongrel.

** _Ba…bump._ **

There wasn’t sound, there had to be, but there wasn’t, all Mila heard was a deafening tone, a ringing in her ears as something deep, deep down in her utterly SNAPPED.

Mika lay like a rag doll, not moving around the pike limb –

The Mongrel was pulling her in, but faster than it, faster than Yuuri and Victor **_hell-bent_** on this creature’s **_DEATH_** – was another pike limb that shot straight through the Mongrel’s core, lifting it out of reach from the Chimera and Unicorn – Mika was dropped – Yuuri caught her – Victor skidded up to a halt, looked back, and saw Mila in her Fauna Form – a creature of no class of matching status but the one she had impaled as fast as a bullet – she made no sense, she was terrifying, menacing, wretched, and beautiful a creature of no form and all of them, and the form she took now could be described as none other than **Eldritch **–

More of her limbs impaled the Mongrel and sent it slamming every which way, into the roof over and over and over and over and over – Mila crying all the while from her many mouths, all of her extra eyes –

_“SHE **(*SLAM*)** WILL **(*SLAM*)** NOT **(*SLAM*)** BECOME **(*SLAM*)** A **(*SLAM*)** PIECE **(*SLAM*)** OF **(*SLAM*)** YOU!!”_

Mila screamed and cried her rage while smashing the Mongrel over and over and over, till the core popped with such a resounding explosion that everyone was knocked back – blown out of their Fauna Forms and into the edges of the rooftop - a powerful Mongrel, a powerful core, who knows how many other cores it absorbed, and it was done in by a little girl who didn’t want to lose another sister…

Mila was in a daze, the last thing she saw before she passed out, was blue, blue, blue eyes from a dark, dark figure…

.

.

.

**One Month Later**

“So pretty my Mika baby,” said Victor, he had finished tightening her head bow. He released the lock on her wheelchair and rolled her out of the twin’s bedroom.

“I’m wearing all black. I look like a giant fly =n=” Mika pouted.

“Still pretty.”

“Pbbbbth.”

“Pbbbbth~”

“Why do we all have to wear black again?”

“It’s a memorial ceremony, to show respect, we all wear black.”

“I guessssssss.”

Yuuri was with Mila in the kitchen, packing up snacks, “There’s my sweet Mika.”

“I wanna push her,” said Mila – Mika started to bounce happily –

“Easy baby,” Yuuri softly tutted –

“Papa’s gonna push her for now.”

_“Please? I can help too.”_

“You can help momma by grabbing the flowers.”

“Honey you got the keys?”

“I do, oh I don’t – no, here, here, I do” –

“Okay, let’s get going.”

“Mila would push me faster,” Mika pouted.

“I would.”

“There’s no need to be fast right now, right now, is all about taking our time.”

Mila pointed to the clock, “No because we’re late” –

Both parents saw the clock and cursed –

Mika -> :o

Mila -> :o

After getting the twins tucked in the car, Mika’s wheelchair in the back, the bags, drinks, flowers, necessities all stored in place and they were driving on the road, Yuuri and Victor settled that they got there when they got there, and that was that. And by the time they got there, it was over.

But maybe that was a blessing in disguise for the family. They were there when the most horrible attack ever launched by a Mongrel pack was made against humanity. How many times were they to re-live that terrible night?

Victor and Yuuri looked at the rear-view mirror to see both their babies had fallen asleep, lulled by the steady movements of the ele-car. Underneath Mika’s clothing was a brace around her stomach that went up her back, and down both her legs, a device to help steady herself from being so wobbly, and get strength back in her body. They had her in her wheelchair to save her strength so she could walk around at the memorial, and for when she got tired and needed to retire to it.

One thing about Yuuri’s Even-Blooded Chimera genes was that he healed miraculously well, more-so in Fauna Form as a perk, but of course it had its limits. The abdomen injury he sustained from his prior Mongrel encounter would have killed anyone else, the gash was so deep, they thought he was cut in half at first, and it was this healing boon that was passed down to his children in various degrees.

No other child would have survived the blood loss Mika endured, on top of her body burning itself out from her metabolic illness, she should have died, but she didn’t. She clung to life by a thread, saved by her mother’s gift, and the response of the med team that arrived to help the family; the Mongrels driven back by a relentless show of force from the Empyrean Gear.

Mika came around days later, oxygen tubes in her nose, feeding tubes down her stomach, medicine pumped directly into her arm, when she suddenly cried out weakly, _“Moummy….Moummy…”_ almost gagging on the plastic –

_“Oh my god – I’m here, I’m here sweetheart I’m here, mommy’s here!” –_ everyone crying tears of joy, Victor taking her little hand and pressing kisses to it; Mila at the foot of Mika’s bed trying to get closer –

“Hi Daou_gh_ddy…”

Her parents and sister talked softly and sweetly to her so she wouldn’t freak out at everything attached to her as the doctor and nurse moved quickly to relieve her of some of the devices used to keep her alive, their services not needed anymore.

It was important to remember however, given Yuuri’s gift, given the skill of the medical personnel, Mika probably wouldn’t have been saved had the family not have been reached in the time-frame they were.

To this day, they don’t know who it was that signaled for help from the roof-top, that called the remaining Empyrean Gear over to help rescue the Katsuki-Nikiforov family while everyone was knocked out from the Mongrel’s exploded core.

It wasn’t Victor. Or Yuuri. Or Mila. They came to as they were being helped up by gentle, yet strong robotic limbs. Yuuri and Victor once conscious ran over to their children, wailing with such anguish, the diagnostics of the robots that helped them showed ‘damage’, even though those robots were without blemish.

Even though the memorial service was over, Yuuri and Victor still decided to get the kids out and walk around and greet and talk to people. They met up with Yuuri’s family and Yurio who kinda figured they wouldn’t make it on time –

“Trust me, you missed nothing, a bunch of stupid empty promises and noise.”

“What kinda promises?” Mila asked.

_“That,”_ Victor intervened, “Is for another time, right now, is to pay respect all those that have passed.”

The memorial grounds were beautiful though. A large park in the heart of the city with names adorning benches, trees, fountains, patches of flowers, whatever the families requested. They walked over to a clearing with a tree and flowers planted all around it, in the ground, a plaque of Ruri’s name (her parents nearby). Victor and Yuuri helped Mika out of her wheelchair, and they all placed flowers down around her name.

There were tears, but quiet ones. Yurio and Yuuri’s family stayed back a way to give them a moment.

Victor let his mind wander a bit.

When Mika lay fighting for her life, Victor had confided to Yuuri his feelings of failure, that he was so sorry he failed to protect them, to forgive him, if he could, and Yuuri responded with a sputter and utter disbelief –_ I threw the Mongrel and didn’t realize it was attached to Mila, you think I feel like parent of the year!? I’m the one that should have been gutted!!_ If Yuuri was in a better state of mind, he wouldn’t have escalated things, he didn’t mean to snap at his husband’s feelings…It was rare the couple argued, they had disagreements sure, but nothing worth shouting or making a scene over, here, emotions just ran so high with, everything, it ended with Mila yelling at them both, all of them sinking down in a crying huddled mess.

That night there was no sleep, not even for Mila, but she snuggled up to her parents and looked up at them.

“Daddy, why do you feel that you didn’t do anything to protect us? You threw yourself at the Mongrel to save me. You charged them without waiting, I don’t understand why you think you’re a bad dad…I think you’re the best dad in the world. I think momma is the best momma in the world. And when Mika wakes up, she is going to say the same thing. So please don’t think bad of yourself daddy, or mommy. I love you, just as you are.”

If her words could heal all wounds, there wouldn’t have been a single person suffering that night.

Later in the morning, Yuuri and Victor thought Mila had finally fallen asleep, the couple embraced and shared a kiss, a kiss that reverberated, _yes I love you, I love you, I love you for life, and the next after that, and after that, and forevermore…._

A small “ugh” from Mila’s pile let them know otherwise.

The outdoors, the breeze, the scent of the flowers brought Victor back. He and Yuuri were holding hands, he squeezed Yuuri’s, Yuuri squeezed back, both of them sharing a teary smile, leaning their heads on one another.

Mila helped her sister stand up, dusting off their dresses.

“I think Ruri doesn’t want us to be sad anymore,” said Mika, “but that’s going to be hard.”

“It’s okay sweetheart, we’re all going to feel sad for a long time,” said Victor, “but it’s okay to feel that way. Come here.”

They all hugged, the girls settling in the arms of their parents.

“Makkachin, take good care of Ruri please,” Mika asked.

They decided to take a walk, they’ll say another goodbye to Ruri before they left.

Mila looked all around, so many sad faces, so many sad people….“Mh,” she drew the attention of both of her parents, “What happens to the people that still need help, even after a long time?”

No easy answer.

“There will be help available for everyone that needs it,” said Victor, “Your mother and I are part of a group of people able to help make sure that everyone gets the help they need.”

“That’s good, but, you know, it’s going to happen again, I don’t know why some people are pretending it won’t.”

Indeed, and it was something both Yuuri and Victor were still trying to reconcile with, and they knew better, but…this is the world they live in. They were only going to make it by working together. Alas, it takes a tragedy, one after another, to make it sink in. Sometimes it never does, but hopefully, maybe, just maybe….

They passed an Empyrean Soldier on duty that looked like it had seen better days, deep gashes and claw marks were raked all over its body. Some people commented on why it was even there, they send a broken bot to this event? _How disrespectful!_

If they only knew it was ‘invited’ there amongst its repair/maintenance schedule by the family it saved from certain death; they said they would feel safer if it would come. Like it had a choice?

Mika couldn’t help but ask her parents to bring her to it, so she could ask the robot, “Are you okay?”

The Soldier focused itself on her, **“I a-m o-k-a-y.”**

“Are you sure?”

**“Y-e-s. A-r-e y-o-u o-k-a-y?”**

“I’m a little sad :c”

The screen on its head pulled up a music icon, and it began to play an 8-bit version of Happy Birthday. Yuuri and Victor looked at each other and got so choked up they almost couldn’t breathe.

The smile Mika and Mila gave it was so bright, the sun would be jealous, perhaps that’s why it began to set.

They said bye to the Soldier, the Soldier waved bye, parted with Yuuri’s family and Yurio, exchanged hugs, hugs, and more hugs, and kisses and said bye to Ruri one more time before the drive back home, a temporary one till their own home was all fixed up.

They did wonder if they should move, despite all the promises, all the new laws, and charges, and pledges…Where could they go? The whole world was like this.

The girls were okay, they just wanted mom and dad, home is home wherever they’re together.

That evening Victor saw Mila at the table drawing, he paused for a moment, pinching his arm before sighing at himself and walking over to her, “Hey sweetpea, what are you drawing?”

“Us.”

_Mmmmmmmmm….Oh it is us…oh…and what a lovely picture it is…_

It was Yuuri and Victor, and Mika and Mila, all holding hands, all smiling in the garden, with Ruri and Makkachin smiling in heaven above with their wings and halos.

_Where is Mika and Yuuri? Oh he’s helping her get a toy._

“Daddy.”

“Yes baby?”

“Look,” she showed him a picture of a mongrel, one with blue eyes, it looked, sad. “I’m not mad at the mongrels. They’re just hungry, they can’t help it, like how Mika can’t help it….We eat animals, animals live in us, we hunt each other and fight to live. Mongrels are just another animal, we want to be dominant, they want to be too, we might never be friends, but hopefully, people will think other people can be friends, then, we might be strong enough to make the Mongrels understand that we all live here, and maybe even one day, help them, if they need it.”

Victor took a moment…._If I was a bad father, would my child be so understanding….? Maybe I am doing something right…_

“Those are important thoughts Mila,” said Victor, he was only sorry their children had to grow up so fast. Giraffes stand 30 minuets after birth. Foals can run hours after birth. It was strange to think of themselves as prey, and yet, here we are. The fact that Mila used her Fauna Form at her age, that Mika's instincts activated at her age...Perhaps relived is a better word on how the parents felt. Relieved, and, a bit sad.

“I think so too.”

If humans wanted to have their status back as the dominant species on the planet, it wasn’t their bodies that needed to evolve.

Mila showed Victor another picture of them all together playing in the yard, Ruri riding Makkachin like a horse, and animals all around, even a Mongrel in the corner.

“When everyone is nice and loving to each other, I think then that’s when the bad things will stop, at least for a little while.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, that's that =w=b
> 
> Questions, comments...screaming...crying....how we doin' 
> 
> One of my more intense fics that's for sure
> 
> EDIT: Okay, I see that ticker going up with little feedback XD it's okay, I'm not mad/upset, I know this fic is a difficult one, I just find it funny because I'm so critical of my horror, maybe I leveled up in it >:3 muahahahahaha~
> 
> EDIT the second: I'm feelin' the love ;;w;; thank-you X3
> 
> Anywho, if you made it this far, I hope it was more of what you were looking for and not too much of what you weren't. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Halloween ;3


End file.
